1. Field of the Disclosure
The following is directed to abrasive articles, and more particularly, bonded abrasive articles suitable for grinding superabrasive workpieces.
2. Description of the Related Art
Abrasives used in machining applications typically include bonded abrasive articles and coated abrasive articles. Coated abrasive articles generally include a layered article including a backing and an adhesive coat to fix abrasive grains to the backing, the most common example of which is sandpaper. Bonded abrasive tools consist of rigid, and typically monolithic, three-dimensional, abrasive composites in the form of wheels, discs, segments, mounted points, hones and other tool shapes, which can be mounted onto a machining apparatus, such as a grinding or polishing apparatus.
Bonded abrasive tools usually have three phases including abrasive grains, bond material, and porosity, and can be manufactured in a variety of ‘grades’ and ‘structures’ that have been defined according to practice in the art by the relative hardness and density of the abrasive composite (grade) and by the volume percentage of abrasive grain, bond, and porosity within the composite (structure).
Some bonded abrasive tools may be particularly useful in grinding and polishing hard materials, such as single crystal materials used in electronics and optics industries as well as superabrasive materials for use in industrial applications, such as earth boring. For example, polycrystalline diamond compact (PDC) cutting elements are typically affixed to the head of drill bits for earth boring applications in the oil and gas industry. The PDC cutting elements include a layer of superabrasive material (e.g., diamond), which must be ground to particular specifications. One method of shaping the PDC cutting elements is use of bonded abrasive tools, which typically incorporate abrasive grains contained within an organic bond matrix.
The industry continues to demand improved methods and articles capable of grinding superabrasive workpieces.